Brutal attack in France latest display of anti-Semitism in Europe

The perpetrators of a horrific home invasion in France expressed hatred for Jews as they robbed and beat their victims.

Multiple members of a Jewish family in the Parisian suburb of Livry-Gargan were imprisoned in their own home last Thursday, and then assaulted and robbed. Throughout the attack, the assailants divulged their intention to target Jews, spewing a number of anti-Semitic tropes as they beat their victims.

The three attackers cut off the electricity, threatening their victims, “You are Jews, you have money. We take money from Jews to give to the poor,” reported Ynet.

One of the victims was eventually able to escape and contact the police, in addition to France’s National Bureau for Vigilance Against Anti-Semitism (BNVCA), but not before the criminals could abscond with jewelry, cash and credit cards.

As is the case in many other European nations, Jews in France remain the targets of hate crimes. Between the flood of migrants from North Africa and the Arab world, who have proven fertile ground for the rise of Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism in Europe, and the ascendance of far right and neo-Nazi parties, Jews justifiably feel increasingly unsafe on the Continent.

While hate crimes against Jews have spiked in the UK, a recent report indicates that enforcement of laws prohibiting anti-Semitic acts has decreased precipitously. France is also no stranger to violent anti-Semitism, including the murderous attack on a Jewish supermarket in Paris in 2015, in addition to Islamic terror attacks including the massive vehicular attack last summer in Nice.

French Jews, who constitute the largest Jewish community outside of Israel and the United States, continue to leave France, mainly for Israel. Since 2006, 40,000 French Jews have left the Republic.